The Kharrim Plague - A Pokemon White Nuzlocke
by devin879
Summary: A horrid plague emerges in a world inhabited by both humans and Pokemon. With the disease spreading, many have traveled to its city of origin in hopes of finding a rumored cure, and all have failed. Unwilling to stand by, a plague doctor oddly immune to the plague makes it his mission to travel to this city himself and find the cure for his hometown. Rated M for violence/language.
1. Chapter 1 - Prologue

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?"

Without a word, I nod to the driver commandeering the carriage, who sighs at my response.

"You're the fourth one I've brought all the way out here in the past month," the carriage driver continues. "You should know that none of the others have turned up since, and are likely dead."

"You act as if I don't already know the dangers of this task, or of those who have already passed," I reply in a frustrated, but calm manner, lightly stamping the metal cane rested in my right hand down. "The only way to find a cure is to head to the epicenter of the disaster."

"Why even bother?" the driver asks me, clearly growing irritated of my attitude. "You're immune! It's not as if the disease will affect you!"

"Perhaps not directly," I acknowledge him. "However, once those around me become infected, it's only a matter of time before I'm forced to deal with a town of monstrosities."

"Point taken," the driver begrudgingly grumbles, turning back towards the dark road ahead, with the only light to illuminate our path being the flaming horses known as Rapidash bringing forward the carriage. Both of us no longer wishing to speak to the other, we continue to ride for a good while in complete silence, before our time of peace and quiet is broken by the slowing, creaking wheels of the carriage. Within moments, we've come to a complete halt. Looking out past the driver from the back of the carriage, I can faintly see a large, unlit city down the road.

"Here's your stop," the driver tells me unenthusiatically, beckoning me to get out of his carriage. I take a few moments to stretch and adjust the rugged backpack strapped over my shoulders, before standing up and hopping out of the side of the carriage, keeping a hold on my black top hat as I do so, so that it doesn't fly off of my head.

"Thanks for the ride," I tell the driver as I reach down for my belt with my free hand and detatch an oily lantern from my belt.

"You know, it's not too late to turn back," the driver attempts to persuade me while I switch on my lantern with some difficulty (doing so with only one hand isn't the easiest thing to do).

"Perhaps in your case," I reply, shaking my head as I begin to walk towards the distant city. "However, this is a mission I must see through until the end, and I refuse to give up before trying."

"Whatever!" the carriage driver shouts to me as I walk away, whipping the reins of his Rapidash in order to get them to turn the carriage around. "Your funeral!" As I head down the road, I begin to hear the creaking, turning wheels of the contraption moving along, which grows quieter and quieter by the second. Before long, I turn back to find the caravan no longer visible or audible to me, the darkness now even managing to shroud the bright flames of the Rapidash.

I am now alone as I approach the large city, its gates coming into my view at last. Knowing this is only the beginning of what will likely be a long, arduous journey, I walk up to the gate, only to freeze in place as I feel a cold tap on my shoulder.

"Welcome..."

**_Author's Note: I will try to update this as I get time to do so. The Nuzlocke itself begins Chapter 1._**


	2. Chapter 2 - The Merchant

Without hesitation, I quickly jump forward and swing my bladed cane to the side, watching as it unravels into a whip covered in many smaller, sharpened blades, otherwise known as a notched whip. Ready to strike upon whatever made contact with me, I quickly turn around, only to find it to be what appears to be another unaffected human.

"Hello, my good man!" the smiling, hunched over man greets me in a friendly manner, putting his hands together and bowing before me. For a moment, I begin to wonder why he stands in that position, only to realize that his incredibly large backpack strapped to him is likely weighing him down. I consider commenting on it, but decide against it, the matter not being my place to speak on in the first place. "What brings a dapper fellow such as yourself to this grim city known as Ymil, stricken by the Kharrim Plague? Wait, don't tell me! You must be one of those searching for a cure! Oh, how many young men and women with their entire lives ahead of them have I seen enter these gates for such a purpose! Tis a shame none have returned! I could tell just from the look of them that they would have had promising futures!"

"So you've met others?" I ask, surprised at the man's knowledge of my mission. Perhaps one of the explorers before me had spoken of their task to him? Whatever the case, it seems likely to me that this man knows far more than he lets on. He also doesn't appear to be hostile at the moment, so I retract the whip with a swift motion and knock the tip of it on the ground, changing it back into a cane. After all, the cane itself is dangerous enough to where I could still fight back if need be.

"Yes, yes!" the man replies to me with an energetic nod. "However, many of them were unprepared for the dangers that lie across this gate, and it's obvious to me based on the fact that none of them have returned! They believe themselves ready, but do not know the true value of companionship! Tell me, my good man, have you a Pokemon?"

"A Pokemon?" I ask, shaking my head. While I knew of them, as did the others in my hometown, nobody had one, for they all had run off around the time the plague had appeared in this city, likely to avoid it. "No, I do not."

"Oh, this spells trouble!" the man begins to fret, pacing back and forth worriedly in front of me. After a few moments, however, he soon stops, and faces me once more with his kind smile having returned. Wasting no time, he removes his enormous backpack, unzips it, and begins to rummage through it. Patiently, I wait for him, and watch as he pulls the metal contraption I recognize as a Poke Ball from his sack.

"In here is a Pokemon known as Snivy," the man says happily, about to toss the ball onto the ground, only to suddenly stop in his tracks. "Oh, where are my manners? I am but a mere merchant known as Zaybix! What is your name, my good man?"

"L-Logan," I reply, uncertain if it was a good decision to tell this "Zaybix" my name, especially considering how strangely he was acting. "My name is Logan."

"A pleasure to meet you, Logan!" Zaybix chuckles and attempts to hand me the Poke Ball, only to realize that my hands are full. Without a word of warning, Zaybix then snatches my lantern and puts the Poke Ball in my hand in its place. "Go ahead! Try it!" Warily, I look down at the Poke Ball, which has scratches practically covering its red top, and begin to wonder what in hell could've caused them. Rather than ponder on it any longer, however, I toss the Poke Ball to the ground, watching as it opens and releases a bright red light. To accompany the light is a metallic-sounding "*pomf*" of sorts.

Straining my eyes to withstand the light being so close to me, I soon find a smile coming to my face as the light fades, and, in its place, I find a strange snake of sorts standing on two legs. From the front, the snake is a cream color, which runs down from the bottom of its mouth to its legs. It's back and tail are both a bright green color, and it appears to have a small yellow collar around its neck, which complements the yellow ring around each of its eyes. Curiously, it appears to observe its surroundings, only to soon notice my presence. It looks up at me and smiles, and I can't help but give a small smile back.

"I can tell you and this Snivy are meant for each other," Zaybix then chuckles, breaking the silence previously filled by the Poke Ball. "I would like you to take her along with you on your quest. I truly believe that you now have an even greater chance of succeeding than ever with him at your side." Considering Zaybix's offer, I look down at the Snivy once more, and watch as it energetically runs around me, occasionally hopping up slightly off of the ground.

"I'll gladly take her along," I tell Zaybix, looking up at the supposed merchant. Happily, the man then turns back to his backpack and sets my lantern down beside it, before bending down and rummaging through it once more. After a few moments, Zaybix then straightens up, and I notice him holding a large abundance of Poke Balls in his arms. However, they seem to be much smaller than the one I had held. Curiously, I watch as he walks to my side and dumps the Poke Balls into the side pocket of my backpack.

"Those are empty Poke Balls," Zaybix tells me, walking back in front of me with a slouch. "If you find any Pokemon that aren't already captured by a Poke Ball in the city, just weaken it, click the center button on one of those Poke Balls, and chuck it at the Pokemon! You may not catch it your first try, but you surely will with enough persistence!" Unsure of what to tell him, all I give Zaybix is a nod as I reach down and pick up the Snivy, who has greatly calmed down by now. With little effort, however, the Snivy manages to squirm out of my loose grip, and jumps onto my shoulder.

"And, for my last gift unto you," Zaybix says, reaching into his pocket and removing a strange red device with a flashing green light on one side of it and a screen of sorts on the other, "I give you a Pokemon Index, or PokeDex for short. If you scan a Pokemon with that light, its species and species name will appear on that screen! Quite the handy tool for one unfamiliar with Pokemon." Before I can even reply, Zaybix moves closer to me and shoves the PokeDex into the pocket of my long black trousers, before walking back to his backpack. He zips it back up, and, while slightly struggling, manages to bring his arms back through the straps and get it off of the ground. He then picks back up my lantern and hands it to me, which I gladly take back. Realizing how truly occupied my hands are with the lantern, I then clip it to my belt, still able to take advantage of its light.

"Thank you for everything," I tell Zaybix with genuineness clear in my voice. "Is there perhaps anything you'd like in return for your services?"

"Not at all!" Zaybix laughs, pushing away my offer. "I merely want someone to succeed! Such death is nothing but a waste of life! I trust that you'll manage to accomplish your goals in Ymil." Glad to have the merchant's support, I smile, and tip my hat to Zaybix.

"In that case, I bid you farewell, my good man," I say, turning towards the large metal gate and letting out a deep sigh. Using my open hand, I manage to push it open, and look back one more time towards Zaybix, who stands there with a smile on his face, waving. Still smiling, I wave back to him, as does the Snivy on my shoulder, and I begin to head into the city, listening as the gate loudly slams shut behind me. Startled by the noise, I notice odd-looking birds previously perched on the roofs of nearby buildings, let out sharp shrieks as they fly off for who-knows-where. Whatever they were, I knew that I had never seen them before.

"Just who was that guy?" I ask myself quietly as I cross the short concrete bridge connecting the gate to the city. "Clearly, he wasn't just some ordinary merchant, but why would be be standing there to greet visitors to the city? It just doesn't add up..." However, I soon stop my walk as I realize that I don't even know my new partner's name, or if it even has a name. Remembering Zaybix's use of the pronoun "her", I realize it must be a female, and begin to come up with names for the Snivy, not even noticing her looking curiously down at me.

Just then, a name comes to me.

"If you haven't got a name, how does 'Celes' sound?" I ask the Snivy, turning my head to look at the small Pokemon. A smile on her face, she nods in response back at me, and we continue our walk into the city. As we near the entrance, however, I slowly enter a state of caution, knowing that just about anything could happen once inside.

Our battles are only beginning...

_**Author's Note: I'm going to try and get a picture made for this within the next few days, so stay tuned for that. I'll also begin posting team summaries at the end of each chapter starting Chapter 3.**_

_**Edit: I changed 'Richard' to 'Celes', and any male pronouns used for the Snivy into female pronouns. It just so happened my starter was female.  
Edit 2: I've added a cover photo! Credit to Blakzer for designing it!**_


End file.
